PVx
Euroopan parlamentti
2019-2024
{CONT}Talousarvion valvontavaliokunta
CONT_PV(2020)1207_1PÖYTÄKIRJAKokous 7. joulukuuta 2020
klo 14.00–16.00 ja 16.45–18.45BRYSSEL
Kokoushuone: Kokoushuone: József Antall 4Q1 ja videokokous
Puheenjohtaja Monika Hohlmeier avasi kokouksen maanantaina 7.
joulukuuta 2020 klo 14.10.
7. joulukuuta 2020 klo 14.00–15.30
1.Esityslistan hyväksyminen
Päätös: Esityslistaluonnos hyväksyttiin sellaisena kuin se on
esitettynä tässä pöytäkirjassa.
2.Puheenjohtajan ilmoitukset
Puheenjohtaja pyysi jäseniä kiinnittämään huomiota CONT News
-uutiskirjeessä esitettyihin tietoihin.
3.Vastuuvapaus 2019: EU:n yleinen talousarvio – komissio
CONT/9/03689
2020/2140(DEC)COM (2020)0288[01] – C9-0220/2020
Esittelijä:
Joachim Kuhs (ID)
Vastaava:
CONT
Lausunto:
AFET, DEVE, INTA, BUDG, ECON, EMPL, ENVI, ITRE, IMCO, TRAN,
REGI, AGRI, PECH, CULT, JURI, LIBE, AFCO, FEMM, PETI
Keskustelu innovoinnista, tutkimuksesta, kulttuurista,
koulutuksesta ja nuorisoasioista vastaavan komission jäsenen Mariya
Gabrielin kanssa asiasta vastaavan tilintarkastustuomioistuimen
jäsenen Mihails Kozlovsin läsnä ollessa
Puheenvuoron käyttivät:
Monika Hohlmeier, Mihails Kozlovs (tilintarkastustuomioistuimen
jäsen), Mariya Gabriel (innovoinnista, tutkimuksesta, kulttuurista,
koulutuksesta ja nuorisoasioista vastaava komission jäsen), Joachim
Kuhs, Markus Pieper, Tsvetelina Penkova, Olivier Chastel, Viola Von
Cramon-Taubadel, Andrey Novakov.
7. joulukuuta 2020 klo 15.30–16.00
4.Tilintarkastustuomioistuimen erityiskertomus nro 10/2020
(vastuuvapaus 2019): EU:n liikenneinfrastruktuurit:
megahankkeiden täytäntöönpanoa on nopeutettava, jotta
verkostovaikutukset toteutuvat ajoissa
CONT/9/03492
Esittelijä:
Andrey Novakov (PPE)
Erityiskertomuksen esittely, asiasta vastaava
tilintarkastustuomioistuimen jäsen Annemie Turtelboom
Puheenvuoron käyttivät:
Monika Hohlmeier, Annemie Turtleboom
(tilintarkastustuomioistuimen jäsen), Andrey Novakov, Maria
Grapini, Joachim Kuhs, Michèle Rivasi, Herald Ruijters (komissio,
liikenteen ja liikkumisen pääosasto).
Kokous keskeytettiin klo 16.10.
***
Kokousta jatkettiin klo 16.57.
7. joulukuuta 2020 klo 16.45–17.30
5.Tilintarkastustuomioistuimen jäsenten osittainen vaihtuminen –
Puolan ehdokas
CONT/9/04598
2020/0806(NLE)12496/2020 – C9-0350/2020
Esittelijä:
Matteo Adinolfi (ID)
Vastaava:
CONT
Puolan nimeämän ehdokkaan Marek Opiołan kuuleminen
Puheenvuoron käyttivät:
Monika Hohlmeier, Marek Opioła (tilintarkastustuomioistuimen
ehdokas), Matteo Adinolfi, Tomáš Zdechovský, Maria Grapini, Olivier
Chastel, Mikuláš Peksa, Ryszard Czarnecki, Petri Sarvamaa, Pierre
Karleskind, Joachim Kuhs, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński.
7. joulukuuta 2020 klo 17.30–17.45
6.Etä-äänestyksen avaaminen
Äänestys on avoinna klo 17.45–18.30
Kaikki jäsenet käyttävät äänestyksessä
EPVote-äänestyssovellusta
* * *
Äänestyksen aikana
7. joulukuuta 2020 klo 17.45–18.45
7.Euroopan tilintarkastustuomioistuimen vuosikertomus EU:n
virastoista varainhoitovuodelta 2019
CONT/9/04743
Esittelijä:
Ryszard Czarnecki (ECR)
Vuosikertomuksen esittely, asiasta vastaava
tilintarkastustuomioistuimen jäsen Alex Brenninkmeijer
8.Tilintarkastustuomioistuimen erityiskertomus nro 22/2020
(vastuuvapaus 2019): EU:n virastojen tulevaisuus –
joustavuutta ja yhteistyötä voidaan vielä lisätä
CONT/9/04748
Esittelijä:
Ryszard Czarnecki (ECR)
Erityiskertomuksen esittely, asiasta vastaava
tilintarkastustuomioistuimen jäsen Alex Brenninkmeijer
Puheenvuoron käyttivät:
Monika Hohlmeier, Alex Brenninkmeijer
(tilintarkastustuomioistuimen jäsen), Rosa Aldea Busquets
(komissio, budjettipääosasto), Bjorn Hansen (kemikaaliviraston
pääjohtaja), Ryszard Czarnecki, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński,
Lefteris Christoforou, Tomáš Zdechovský, Sándor Rónai, Katalin
Cseh, Joachim Kuhs, Mikuláš Peksa.
9.Muut asiat
10.Seuraavat kokoukset
14. joulukuuta 2020 klo 17.30–17.45 (Bryssel)
6.–7. tammikuuta 2021 (Bryssel)
Kokous päättyi klo 19.14.
PV\1220687FI.docxPE662.107v01-00
FIMoninaisuudessaan yhtenäinenFI
PE662.107v01-006/23PV\1220687FI.docx
FI
PV\1220687FI.docx5/23PE662.107v01-00
FI
Results of roll-call vote
5.Partial renewal of the Members of the Court of Auditors - PL
nominee
CONT/9/04598
2020/0806(NLE)12496/2020 – C9-0350/2020
Rapporteur: Matteo Adinolfi
Key to symbols:
+:in favour
-:against
0:abstention
7
+
23
-
0
0
ПРИСЪСТВЕН ЛИСТ/LISTA DE ASISTENCIA/PREZENČNÍ
LISTINA/DELTAGERLISTE/ ANWESENHEITSLISTE/KOHALOLIJATE
NIMEKIRI/ΚΑΤΑΣΤΑΣΗ ΠΑΡΟΝΤΩΝ/RECORD OF ATTENDANCE/
LISTE DE PRÉSENCE/POPIS NAZOČNIH/ELENCO DI
PRESENZA/APMEKLĒJUMU REĢISTRS/DALYVIŲ SĄRAŠAS/ JELENLÉTI
ÍV/REĠISTRU TA' ATTENDENZA/PRESENTIELIJST/LISTA OBECNOŚCI/LISTA DE
PRESENÇAS/ LISTĂ DE PREZENŢĂ/PREZENČNÁ LISTINA/SEZNAM
NAVZOČIH/LÄSNÄOLOLISTA/NÄRVAROLISTA
Бюро/Mesa/Předsednictvo/Formandskabet/Vorstand/Juhatus/Προεδρείο/Bureau/Predsjedništvo/Ufficio
di presidenza/Prezidijs/
Biuras/Elnökség/Prezydium/Birou/Predsedníctvo/Predsedstvo/Puheenjohtajisto/Presidiet
(*)
Monika Hohlmeier , Isabel García Muñoz, Caterina Chinnici, Tamás
DeutschMonika HohlmeierMonika HohlmeierBUREAUMSG
Членове/Diputados/Poslanci/Medlemmer/Mitglieder/Parlamendiliikmed/Βουλευτές/Members/Députés/Zastupnici/Deputati/Deputāti/
Nariai/Képviselõk/Membri/Leden/Posłowie/Deputados/Deputaţi/Jäsenet/Ledamöter
Matteo Adinolfi, Olivier Chastel, Lefteris Christoforou, Ryszard
Czarnecki, José Manuel Fernandes, Daniel Freund, Christian Ghinea,
Pierre Karleskind, Joachim Kuhs, Tsvetelina Penkova, Markus Pieper,
Sabrina Pignedoli, Petri Sarvamaa, Lara Wolters, Angelika Winzig,
Tomáš Zdechovský
Заместници/Suplentes/Náhradníci/Stedfortrædere/Stellvertreter/Asendusliikmed/Αναπληρωτές/Substitutes/Suppléants/Zamjenici/
Supplenti/Aizstājēji/Pavaduojantysnariai/Póttagok/Sostituti/Plaatsvervangers/Zastępcy/Membros
suplentes/Supleanţi/Náhradníci/
Namestniki/Varajäsenet/Suppleanter
Joachim Brudziński, Katalin Cseh, Bas Eickhout, Maria Grapini,
Andrey Novakov, Jan Olbrycht, Mikuláš Peksa, Michèle Rivasi, Sándor
Rónai, Viola Von Cramon-Taubadel
209 (7)
216 (3)
56 (8) (Точка от дневния ред/Punto del orden del día/Bod pořadu
jednání (OJ)/Punkt på dagsordenen/Tagesordnungspunkt/
Päevakorra punkt/Σημείο της ημερήσιας διάταξης/Agenda
item/Point OJ/Točka dnevnog reda/Punto all'ordine del giorno/Darba
kārtības punkts/Darbotvarkės punktas/Napirendi pont/Punt
Aġenda/Agendapunt/Punkt porządku dziennego/Ponto OD/Punct de pe
ordinea de zi/Bod programu schôdze/Točka UL/Esityslistan
kohta/Punkt på föredragningslistan)
Наблюдатели/Observadores/Pozorovatelé/Observatører/Beobachter/Vaatlejad/Παρατηρητές/Observers/Observateurs/Promatrači/
Osservatori/Novērotāji/Stebėtojai/Megfigyelők/Osservaturi/Waarnemers/Obserwatorzy/Observadores/Observatori/Pozorovatelia/
Opazovalci/Tarkkailijat/Observatörer
По покана на председателя/Por invitación del presidente/Na
pozvání předsedy/Efter indbydelse fra formanden/Auf Einladung des
Vorsitzenden/Esimehe kutsel/Με πρόσκληση του Προέδρου/At the
invitation of the Chair/Sur l’invitation du président/
Na poziv predsjednika/Su invito del
presidente/Pēc priekšsēdētāja uzaicinājuma/Pirmininkui
pakvietus/Az elnök meghívására/ Fuq stedina
taċ'Chairman'/Op uitnodiging van de voorzitter/Na
zaproszenie Przewodniczącego/A convite do Presidente/La invitaţia
preşedintelui/ Na pozvanie predsedu/Na povabilo
predsednika/Puheenjohtajan kutsusta/På ordförandens inbjudan
Marek Opioła (ECA candidate)
Съвет/Consejo/Rada/Rådet/Rat/Nõukogu/Συμβούλιο/Council/Conseil/Vijeće/Consiglio/Padome/Taryba/Tanács/Kunsill/Raad/
Conselho/Consiliu/Svet/Neuvosto/Rådet (*)
Комисия/Comisión/Komise/Kommissionen/Kommission/Komisjon/Επιτροπή/Commission/Komisija/Commissione/Bizottság/
Kummissjoni/Commissie/Komisja/Comissão/Comisie/Komisia/Komissio/Kommissionen
(*)
Rosa Aldea Busquets, Mariya Gabriel, Jean-Eric Paquet, Herald
Ruijters
Други институции и органи/Otras instituciones y
organismos/Ostatní orgány a instituce/Andre institutioner og
organer/Andere Organe und Einrichtungen/Muud institutsioonid ja
organid/Λοιπά θεσμικά όργανα και οργανισμοί/Other institutions and
bodies/Autres institutions et organes/Druge institucije i
tijela/Altre istituzioni e altri organi/Citas iestādes un
struktūras/Kitos institucijos ir įstaigos/ Más intézmények és
szervek/Istituzzjonijiet u korpi oħra/Andere instellingen en
organen/Inne instytucje i organy/Outras instituições e outros
órgãos/Alte instituții și organe/Iné inštitúcie a orgány/Muut
toimielimet ja elimet/Andra institutioner och organ
European Court of Auditors
ECHA
Alex Brenninkmeijer, Mihails Kozlovs, Annemie Turtleboom
Bjorn Hansen
Други участници/Otros participantes/Ostatní účastníci/Endvidere
deltog/Andere Teilnehmer/Muud osalejad/Επίσης παρόντες/Other
participants/Autres participants/Drugi sudionici/Altri
partecipanti/Citi klātesošie/Kiti dalyviai/Más
résztvevők/Parteċipanti ohra/Andere
aanwezigen/Inni uczestnicy/Outros participantes/Alţi
participanţi/Iní účastníci/Drugi udeleženci/Muut
osallistujat/Övriga deltagare
Секретариат на политическите групи/Secretaría de los Grupos
políticos/Sekretariát politických skupin/Gruppernes sekretariat/
Sekretariat der Fraktionen/Fraktsioonide sekretariaat/Γραμματεία
των Πολιτικών Ομάδων/Secretariats of political groups/Secrétariat
des groupes politiques/Tajništva klubova zastupnika/Segreteria
gruppi politici/Politisko grupu sekretariāts/Frakcijų sekretoriai/
Képviselőcsoportok titkársága/Segretarjat gruppi
politiċi/Fractiesecretariaten/Sekretariat Grup
Politycznych/Secretariado dos grupos políticos/Secretariate grupuri
politice/Sekretariát politických skupín/Sekretariat političnih
skupin/Poliittisten ryhmien sihteeristöt/ De politiska
gruppernas sekretariat
PPE
S&D
Renew
ID
Verts/ALE
ECR
GUE/NGL
NI
Кабинет на председателя/Gabinete del Presidente/Kancelář
předsedy/Formandens Kabinet/Kabinett des Präsidenten/Presidendi
kantselei/Γραφείο του Προέδρου/President's Office/Cabinet du
Président/Ured predsjednika/Gabinetto del Presidente/Priekšsēdētāja
kabinets/Pirmininko
kabinetas/Elnöki hivatal/Kabinett tal-President/Kabinet
van de Voorzitter/Gabinet Przewodniczącego/Gabinete do
Presidente/Cabinet Preşedinte/Kancelária predsedu/Urad predsednika/Puhemiehen
kabinetti/Talmannens kansli
Кабинет на генералния секретар/Gabinete del Secretario
General/Kancelář generálního tajemníka/Generalsekretærens Kabinet/
Kabinett des Generalsekretärs/Peasekretäri büroo/Γραφείο του
Γενικού Γραμματέα/Secretary-General's Office/Cabinet du Secrétaire
général/Ured glavnog tajnika/Gabinetto del Segretario
generale/Ģenerālsekretāra kabinets/Generalinio sekretoriaus
kabinetas/ Főtitkári hivatal/Kabinett tas-Segretarju
Ġenerali/Kabinet van de secretaris-generaal/Gabinet
Sekretarza Generalnego/Gabinete do Secretário-Geral/Cabinet
Secretar General/Kancelária generálneho
tajomníka/Urad generalnega sekretarja/Pääsihteerin kabinetti/
Generalsekreterarens kansli
Генерална дирекция/Dirección General/Generální
ředitelství/Generaldirektorat/Generaldirektion/Peadirektoraat/Γενική
Διεύθυνση/ Directorate-General/Direction générale/Glavna
uprava/Direzione generale/Ģenerāldirektorāts/Generalinis
direktoratas/Főigazgatóság/ Direttorat
Ġenerali/Directoratengeneraal/Dyrekcja
Generalna/Direcção-Geral/Direcţii Generale/Generálne
riaditeľstvo/Generalni direktorat/Pääosasto/Generaldirektorat
DG PRES
DG IPOL
DG EXPO
DG EPRS
DG COMM
DG PERS
DG INLO
DG TRAD
DG LINC
DG FINS
DG ITEC
DG SAFE
Правна служба/Servicio Jurídico/Právní služba/Juridisk
Tjeneste/Juristischer Dienst/Õigusteenistus/Νομική Υπηρεσία/Legal
Service/ Service juridique/Pravna služba/Servizio
giuridico/Juridiskais dienests/Teisės tarnyba/Jogi
szolgálat/Servizz legali/Juridische Dienst/ Wydział prawny/Serviço
Jurídico/Serviciu Juridic/Právny servis/Oikeudellinen
yksikkö/Rättstjänsten
Секретариат на комисията/Secretaría de la comisión/Sekretariát
výboru/Udvalgssekretariatet/Ausschusssekretariat/Komisjoni
sekretariaat/Γραμματεία της επιτροπής/Committee
secretariat/Secrétariat de la commission/Tajništvo
odbora/Segreteria della commissione/Komitejas sekretariāts/Komiteto
sekretoriatas/A bizottság titkársága/Segretarjat
tal-kumitat/Commissiesecretariaat/ Sekretariat
komisji/Secretariado da comissão/Secretariat
comisie/Sekretariat odbora/Valiokunnan
sihteeristö/Utskottssekretariatet
Evelyn Waldherr
Сътрудник/Asistente/Asistent/Assistent/Assistenz/Βοηθός/Assistant/Assistente/Palīgs/Padėjėjas/Asszisztens/Asystent/Pomočnik/
Avustaja/Assistenter
Kameliya Velcheva
*
(P)=Председател/Presidente/Předseda/Formand/Vorsitzender/Esimees/Πρόεδρος/Chair/Président/Predsjednik/Priekšsēdētājs/
Pirmininkas/Elnök/'Chairman'/Voorzitter/Przewodniczący/Preşedinte/Predseda/Predsednik/Puheenjohtaja/Ordförande
(VP)
=Заместник-председател/Vicepresidente/Místopředseda/Næstformand/Stellvertretender
Vorsitzender/Aseesimees/Αντιπρόεδρος/
ViceChair/Potpredsjednik/VicePrésident/Potpredsjednik/Priekšsēdētāja
vietnieks/Pirmininko pavaduotojas/Alelnök/ Viċi
'Chairman'/Ondervoorzitter/Wiceprzewodniczący/Vice-Presidente/Vicepreşedinte/Podpredseda/Podpredsednik/
Varapuheenjohtaja/Vice ordförande
(M)=Член/Miembro/Člen/Medlem./Mitglied/Parlamendiliige/Βουλευτής/Member/Membre/Član/Membro/Deputāts/Narys/Képviselő/
Membru/Lid/Członek/Membro/Membru/Člen/Poslanec/Jäsen/Ledamot
(F)=Длъжностно
лице/Funcionario/Úředník/Tjenestemand/Beamter/Ametnik/Υπάλληλος/Official/Fonctionnaire/Dužnosnik/
Funzionario/Ierēdnis/Pareigūnas/Tisztviselő/Uffiċjal/Ambtenaar/Urzędnik/Funcionário/Funcţionar/Úradník/Uradnik/Virkamies/
Tjänsteman
Issue N°17 - 7 DECEMber 2020
NEWSLETTER
COMMITTEE MEETING
Monday, 7 decemBER 2020
14:00 to 16:00 and 16:45 to 18:45
Remote participation of Members
Room: remote meeting with Interactio (József Antall (JAN)
4Q1)
Monday, 7 December, 14:00 - 15:30
1.Adoption of the agenda
The draft agenda and meeting documents are available in the
meeting file.
2.Chair’s announcements
The Chair draws attention to the following points:
Languages available
FR, DE, IT, EL, EN, ES, CS, HU, PL and RO
Webstreaming
The meeting will be webstreamed and can be followed live via the
CONT webpage.
3.2019 discharge: General budget of the EU - European
Commission
CONT/9/03689 - 2020/2140(DEC)
Discharge hearing with Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner responsible
for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, in the
presence of reporting ECA member Mihails Kozlovs
Rapporteur:Joachim Kuhs (ID)
Administrators: Aleksi Hyvätti / Kaare Barslev
Shadow Rapporteurs: Markus Pieper (EPP), Tsvetelina Penkova
(S&D), Olivier Chastel (RE), Viola Von Cramon-Taubadel
(Greens), Ryszard Czarnecki (ECR), Luke Ming Flanagan (GUE/NGL)
On 7 December 2020, the CONT Committee will hold a hearing with
Commissioner Gabriel in the context of the discharge procedure for
the Commission for financial year 2019.
Research policy is part of Chapter 4 in the European Court of
Auditors' Annual Report entitled "Competitiveness for growth and
jobs – MFF heading 1a". The Commission's Directorate-General on
Research and Innovation, DG RTD, implements EU funds under this
policy field, which in 2019 represented 13,7 % of the total EU
budget (EUR 21,7 billion in payments). The Court's audit population
for 2019 covered for EUR 16,7 billion of the expenditure.
DG RTD's expenditure is implemented mainly in direct management
in the form of grants to public or private beneficiaries
participating in projects. DG RTD had a reservation in its Annual
Activity Report for 2019, concerning the Seventh Framework
Programme, as its residual error rate was above the materiality
threshold at 3,52 %.
Total planned spending for MFF heading 1a in the 2014-2020
period is EUR 142,1 billion, of which EUR 83,3 billion was paid out
by the end of 2019. Some of the most significant policy instruments
in this sub-heading are Horizon 2020, Erasmus+, Galileo and
CEF.
In 2019, the Court examined the following aspects for
‘Competitiveness for growth and jobs’:
a sample of 130 transactions, designed to be representative of
the full range of spending under this MFF sub-heading. The sample
consisted of 80 transactions in the area of research and innovation
(70 for Horizon 2020 and 10 for FP7) and 50 under other programmes
and activities, notably Erasmus+, CEF and space programmes. The
beneficiaries audited were located in 19 Member States and four
non-EU countries.
selected systems, which concerned the reliability of the
Commission’s ex post audit work on the regularity of transactions
under H2020. For this purpose, the Court selected six audits
carried out by the Commission’s Common Audit Service (CAS) and 14
that the Commission had contracted out to two private external
auditors.
the regularity information given in the annual activity reports
(AARs) of DG RTD, DG EAC and DG GROW, and its inclusion in the
Commission’s Annual Management and Performance Report (AMPR).
In 2019, 51 (i.e. 39 %) of the 130 transactions examined
contained errors. Based on the 28 errors the Court quantified, the
Court estimated the level of error to be at 4,0 % for this policy
field. For 2019, the Court also looked more closely into the
performance of MFF heading 1a, namely on Horizon 2020 and EFSI,
which represent 47,2 % of the total budget in payments for this MFF
heading.
The discharge hearing will be based on information provided in
public documents, such as
the Court of Auditors' 2019 Annual Report, and
the new Annual Report on Performance of the EU budget, as well
as
the Commission's Integrated Financial and Reporting package,
and
the 2019 Annual Activity Report of DG RTD.
All the relevant documents can be found on the CONT website.
In accordance with the timetable for the discharge procedure,
the written questions for this meeting were sent to the Commission
on 26 November 2020 and emailed to Members on the same day. The
Commission’s answers are expected on 3 December and the CONT
secretariat will forward them immediately to Members.
It is proposed that the hearing with Commissioner Gabriel
proceeds as follows:
Introduction by the reporting Member of the European Court of
Auditors, Mihails Kozlovs, who will present the findings of the
respective chapters of the Annual Report 2019, and the Report on
the performance of the EU budget;
Commissioner Gabriel will reply to this introduction;
CONT Rapporteur and shadow rapporteurs will put questions to the
Commissioner and the Court followed by answers (the ping-pong
system);
Other Members will question the Commissioner and/or the
Court;
Closing remarks by the CONT Rapporteur.
CONT Timetable
Event
Body
Date
Exchange of views
CONT
22-23 February 2021
Deadline for amendments
CONT
2 March 2021
Vote
CONT
22-23 March 2021
Adoption of report
Plenary
April 2021
15:30 - 16:00
4.ECA Special Report 10/2020 (Discharge 2019) : EU transport
infrastructures: more speed needed in megaproject implementation to
deliver network effects on time
CONT/9/03492
Presentation of the special report by reporting ECA Member,
Annemie Turtelboom
Rapporteur:Andrey Novakov (EPP)
Administrators: Aleksi Hyvätti
Shadow Rapporteurs: Maria Grapini (S&D), Martina Dlabajová
(RE)
The Court of Auditors audited the Commission’s management of
eight cross-border transport megaprojects in thirteen Member
States. These projects are key missing links for connecting
national networks to create seamless European transport corridors.
The total estimated cost of the selected Transport Flagship
Infrastructures (TFIs) was €54.0 billion, of which the EU has paid
€3.4 billion to the date of the Special Report.
The Court assessed whether the Commission has ensured that EU
co-funded cross-border TFIs on the EU core transport network are
well planned and efficient. To do so, the Court analysed: whether
the Commission has ensured that processes applied in Member States
for delivering TFIs will lead to completed and operational core
network corridors by 2030; whether the planning of TFIs is of good
quality, robust and transparent; whether the implementation of TFIs
is efficient; and whether the Commission’s supervision of EU
co-funded investments in actions which are part of TFIs is
adequate.
The Court selected eight TFIs with cross-border impact on seven
out of nine core network corridors. The audit involved 13 Member
States and covered road and rail infrastructure, inland waterways,
and combinations of rail and road, and maritime and rail
infrastructure. Their total cost was €54.0 billion; the amount of
EU co-funding allocated to the eight selected TFIs has been €7.5
billion to the date of the audit, of which €3.4 billion had already
been disbursed. The Court also audited 17 underlying actions.
The following eight TFIs were audited by the Court:
Rail Baltica: a rail line connecting Estonia, Latvia and
Lithuania to Poland and enabling a link to Finland (on the North
Sea Baltic corridor);
Lyon-Turin link: a cross-border rail link connecting France and
Italy (on the Mediterranean corridor);
Brenner Base Tunnel: a cross-border rail link connecting Austria
and Italy (on the Scandinavian-Mediterranean corridor);
Fehmarn Belt fixed link: a rail/road connection between Denmark
and Germany (on the Scandinavian-Mediterranean corridor);
Basque Y and its connection with France: a high-speed rail
connection linking up Vitoria in Spain to Bordeaux in France (on
the Atlantic corridor);
Seine-Scheldt link: originally an inland waterway link between
the rivers Seine and Scheldt, evolving into an inland waterway
network in France and Belgium (on the North Sea Mediterranean and
Atlantic corridors);
A1 motorway in Romania (on the Rhine-Danube corridor);
E59 railway line in Poland and its connection to the ports of
Szczecin and Swinoujscie (on the Baltic-Adriatic corridor).
The Court found that the core network is unlikely to be
operational by 2030, as was planned in 2013. The delays in the
construction and putting into operation of these megaprojects put
at risk the effective functioning of five out of nine TEN-T
corridors. The Court found examples of poor planning and
inefficient implementation. While the Commission’s oversight of the
timely completion of the network has weaknesses and is distant, the
Commission has a tool that can be built upon to improve
performance. The Court made a number of recommendations to improve
the sound financial management and to support the long-term
planning, management and supervision of these multi-billion euro
investments.
Suspension of the meeting until 16h45
16.45 – 17.30
5.Partial renewal of the Members of the Court of Auditors - PL
nominee
CONT/9/04598 - 2020/0806(NLE)
Hearing of Marek Opioła, candidate nominated by Poland
Rapporteur:Matteo Adinolfi (ID)
Administrators: Olivier Sautière / Kaare Barslev
Shadow Rapporteurs: Tomáš Zdechovský (EPP), Maria Grapini
(S&D), Olivier Chastel (RE), Mikuláš Peksa (Greens), Ryszard
Czarnecki (ECR), Luke Ming Flanagan (GUE/NGL)
Background
The Members of the European Court of Auditors shall be appointed
for a term of six years. In accordance with Article 286(2) of the
TFEU the Council, after consulting the European Parliament, shall
adopt the list of Members drawn up in accordance with the proposals
made by each Member State.
Appointments to the ECA are submitted to Parliament's plenary on
the basis of a report from CONT, which takes into account the
primary law requirement of Article 286(1) of the TFEU: "the Members
of the Court of Auditors shall be chosen from among persons who
belong or have belonged in their respective States to external
audit bodies or who are especially qualified for this office. Their
independence must be beyond doubt. ", as well as other
considerations.
A. Procedure
According to Rule 129 (1) of Parliament's Rules of Procedure,
"candidates nominated as Members of the Court of Auditors shall be
invited to make a statement before the committee responsible and to
answer questions put by members. The committee shall vote on each
nomination separately by secret ballot."
I. Questionnaire and statement
In preparation for the hearing, the candidate has been asked to
answer the questionnaire prepared by CONT.
II. The hearing
The hearing will take place according to the timetable set out
in the draft agenda.
Opening of the hearing by the Chair;
The candidate will be invited to make an opening statement (5
minutes) and the remainder of his hearing will be devoted to
replies to questions from Members (40 minutes);
The CONT Rapporteur and shadow-rapporteurs will put questions to
the candidate (the ping-pong system);
Other members will question the candidate (catch-the-eye);
Closing remarks by the CONT Rapporteur;
Concluding remarks by the Chair.
III. Evaluation, votes and adoption of draft report
Once the hearing has been completed, the committee will hold an
evaluation of the candidate and then proceed to vote on the
appointment of the candidate in question. Evaluation, votes and
adoption of draft report will be in camera.
According to Rule 129 (1), the committee shall vote by secret
ballot. The vote will be carried out by means of the remote
electronic voting system. In accordance with Rule 192, Members
should indicate for a candidate whether they give a favourable
opinion, a negative opinion or abstain.
B. The Report
The format of opinions on candidates for membership of the Court
of Auditors is defined as follows[footnoteRef:1]: [1: Parliament's
resolution of 4 February 2014
]
a) each recommendation on each nomination shall be submitted in
the form of a report, to be adopted on the basis of a majority of
the votes cast, with the report merely indicating the
nomination;
b) the report shall consist of:
i. citations summarising the circumstances of the referral to
Parliament;
ii. recitals outlining the procedure to the competent
committee;
iii. operative text which may only consist of a favourable
opinion or an unfavourable opinion;
c) citations and recitals shall not be put to the vote;
These strict rules on procedures, before the Committee on
Budgetary Control and in plenary sitting, adopted by Parliament do
not allow any amendments to be tabled to the draft report.
The draft report will be finalised, according to the outcome of
the evaluation and the vote in committee. The candidate's
curriculum vitæ and the answers to CONT questionnaire or summary
shall be annexed to the report.
The report for plenary will state that Parliament delivers
either a favourable or a negative opinion on the appointment of the
candidate.
The draft report was circulated to Members on 01 December and is
available on the CONT website.
CONT Timetable
Event
Body
Date
Adoption of report
Plenary
December 2020
Suspension of the meeting until 17h45
6.Opening of the remote voting procedure
Voting procedure will be open from 17.45-18.30
All Members will vote using the EPVote application
* * *
Parallel to the voting session
17:45 - 18:45
7.ECA Annual Report on EU agencies for the financial year
2019
CONT/9/04743
Presentation of the annual report by reporting ECA Member, Alex
Brenninkmeijer
Rapporteurs:Ryszard Czarnecki (ECR), Joachim Brudziński
(ECR)
Administrator: Hans Stander
Shadow Rapporteurs:
EPP:
Tomáš Zdechovský - CEDEFOP, EMCDDA, ETF, EU-OSHA, EUROFOUND,
CEPOL, EASO, EU-LISA, EUROJUST, EUROPOL, FRA, FRONTEX
Lefteris Christoforou - all other agencies
Sándor Rónai (S&D)
RE:
Ramona Strugariu - FRA, EUROJUST, EUROPOL, EMCDDA, Frontex,
EU-LISA, CEPOL, EASO;
Cristian Ghinea - EU-OSHA, EBA, ETF;
Gilles Boyer - EIOPA, ESMA;
Katalin Cseh - ECDC, BEREC, EIT, ECHA, EFSA, EMA, ENISA, ACER,
Euratom, GNSS, EEA;
Olivier Chastel - CDT, CEDEFOP, ERA, EASA, EIGE, Eurofound,
horizontal report);
Pierre Kaleskind - EFCA, EMSA
Bas Eickhout (Greens)
Younous Omarjee (GUE/NGL)
The European Court of Auditors published its 2019 annual report
on the EU agencies alongside its special report on the Future of EU
agencies on 22 October 2020.
According to the Court, the financing sources for the agencies
in 2019 amounted to EUR 148.5 billion, compared to EUR 144.8
billion in 2018.
In its Annual report 2019, the Court gave a clean opinion on the
reliability of the accounts and on the legality and regularity of
revenue of all agencies. For the legality and regularity of
expenditure, the Court gave a clean opinion for all but two
agencies: ACER and EASO. EASO also had a qualified opinion on
expenditure in 2018.
The qualified opinion for ACER results from two irregular
procurement procedures that were not appropriately competitive. The
resulting payments of these irregular procedures amounted to 6,3 %
of all payments made by ACER, with a total value of EUR 988
138.
The qualified opinion for EASO mainly resulted from findings
reported since 2016, however, also in 2019 the Court identified a
number of payments associated with an irregular selection procedure
of expert consultants. The resulting payments in 2019 from these
irregular procedures amounted to 14,6 % of all payments made by
EASO, with a total value of EUR 13 979 880 (of which EUR 13 868 576
stem from 2016-2018 irregular procedures).
The Court also made a number of observations in so called
'emphasis of matter' and 'other matter' paragraphs. These do not
qualify the opinion of the Court as such, but require the attention
of the reader to better understand the situation.
On the reliability of the accounts these concerned EBA, EMA
(emphasis of matter paragraphs related to their relocation from
London and the resulting lease and rental issues) and CdT (other
matter paragraph related to the lack of disclosure of the impact of
the COVID-19 pandemic on its operations).
On the legality and regularity of revenue, these concerned ECHA
(emphasis of matter paragraph on the corrections of fee
calculations, with the total amount of corrections for 2019 yet
unknown) and EMSA (other matter paragraph on fees charged to credit
rating agencies that potentially can avoid fees by transferring
revenues from credit rating agencies under EU jurisdiction to
related entities outside the EU).
On the legality and regularity of expenditure, these concerned
Frontex (emphasis of matter paragraph on grant management) and EIGE
(Other matter paragraph on a case pending before the Court of
Justice of the European Union on temporary agency work).
The Court also made 82 observations concerning 29 agencies to
address areas where further improvements are needed.
The documents are published on the CONT website and of
particular relevance for the hearing as regards the 2019 discharge
for the agencies are:
- The ECA’s 2019 Annual Report on EU agencies;
- The ECA’s Special Report on the Future of EU Agencies;
It is proposed that the exchange of views shall proceed as
follows, integrating agenda points 7 and 8 (see below):
Introduction by the Member of the European Court of Auditors, Mr
Alex Brenninkmeijer who will present the findings of the ECA Annual
Report on EU agencies for the financial year 2019 and the Special
Report on the Future of EU Agencies;
Response of the deputy Director-General for Budget of the
Commission, Ms Rosa Aldea Busquets to the ECA Special Report
Response of the Chair of the EU Agencies’ Network, Mr Bjorn
Hansen, to the ECA annual report and the ECA Special Report;
CONT Rapporteur and shadow rapporteurs will put questions to the
Court followed by answers (the ping-pong system);
Other Members will question the Court;
Closing remarks by the CONT Rapporteur.
CONT Timetable
Event
Body
Date
Exchange of views
CONT
22-23 February 2021
Deadline for amendments
CONT
2 March 2021
Vote
CONT
22-23 March 2021
Adoption of report
Plenary
April 2021
8.ECA Special Report 22/2020 (Discharge 2019): Future of EU
agencies – Potential for more flexibility and cooperation
CONT/9/04748
Presentation of the special report by reporting ECA Member, Alex
Brenninkmeijer
Rapporteur:Ryszard Czarnecki (ECR)
Administrator: Hans Stander
Shadow Rapporteurs: Lefteris Christoforou (EPP)
The Court also issued a Special Report, alongside the annual
report, that focused on the performance of all agencies, the
Special report on the Future of EU agencies.
For this Special Report, the Court builds on knowledge gathered
in its annual financial audits of the agencies and in previous
performance audits of individual agencies. The Court complemented
this by other audit activities to assess whether the Commission and
the agencies have put in place adequate conditions to ensure
performance of EU agencies. The report therefore is not so much
about the performance of the Agencies in achieving their objectives
as such, but more about the conditions that enable them to achieve
their objectives.
The Court findings centre on two particular issues:
1.The first is flexibility to serve the relevant EU policy and
European cooperation, especially when the scope of the policy is
wide and subject to change in a complex global context. The Court
identified a lack of flexibility in what they termed the 'life
cycle' of an agency: the set-up, functioning, and possible
winding-up.
This starts with the assessment of the need for a new agency,
usually performed in a so called impact assessment. The analysis of
the Court showed that this process is not always as rational as it
is intended to be: the conclusions of the impact assessment are not
always followed and in some cases the decision to set up an agency
was already taken before the impact assessment was completed.
As regards the functioning of agencies, the Common Approach for
agencies (agreed between Parliament, Council and Commission)
requires that every agency should be evaluated every five years.
However, the founding regulations of several agencies still do not
contain this requirement, or have a different frequency (from 3 to
10 years, or up to the management board to decide) and as a result,
not all agencies are evaluated every five years. Another issue
identified by the Court relates to adequate financial and human
resources. This relates in particular to the fact that agencies
receive additional tasks, without receiving adequate resources.
As regards the winding down of agencies, the Common Approach
called for the insertion of a so-called 'sunset clause' or a
'review clause' in the founding regulation of all agencies,
mandating the Commission to propose amending or repealing the
founding regulation of an agency when it considers that the
existence of the agency is no longer justified with regard to its
assigned objectives. Seven years after the Joint Statement on the
Common Approach, only seven out of 37 agencies have a “sunset
clause”, and 13 have a “review clause”, in their founding
regulations.
2.The second is the extent to which agencies act as centres of
expertise and networking for the implementation of EU policies. The
Court identified cases of overly complex or weak governance
arrangements and found that performance information focused on
outputs and activities rather than on their contribution to policy
implementation. In addition, the Court found that a lack of
cooperation with and/or support from Member States, industry,
Commission or other agencies prevents agencies from fully
performing their role. The Court's findings focus in particular
on:
The composition of management boards, that does not always allow
efficient decision-making. Some management boards have 30-35
members with some exceptions having up to 90 members, making
decision-taking difficult and generating considerable
administrative costs. Also the involvement of individual management
board members varies widely.
Budgetary authorities (Parliament and Council) hold agencies
accountable for finance and compliance matters, but focus less on
performance. The sectoral policy committees in the Parliament,
supervising the agencies' operations at high level, send opinions
to the Budgetary Control Committee as input for the discharge
procedure, but the actual collection and analysis of performance
information is limited and concerns individual agencies. The
Council and its working parties mainly hold the partner DGs
accountable for the agencies’ performance.
Agencies report more on performance aspects, but their
contribution to EU policy and cooperation is not clearly measured
and communicated to citizens.
Cooperation between agencies and other national, EU and
international bodies generally works well, with some
exceptions.
The Court issued the following recommendations, addressed to the
Commission:
1.Ensure the relevance, coherence and flexibility of the set-up
of agencies.
The following recommendations were addressed to the Commission
and the agencies:
2.Allocate resources to agencies in a more flexible manner;
3.Improve governance and reporting on performance;
4.Strengthen the role of agencies as centres for sharing
expertise and networking.
The ECA annual report and the special report are available on
the CONT website. As a follow-up, two succinct working documents
with the recommendations of the Rapporteur will be sent to CONT
Members.
9. Any other business
10.Next meetings
14 December 2020, 17.30 – 17.45 (Brussels) tbc
6-7 January 2021 (Brussels)
Paperless Programme (internal users only)
Access CONT committee meeting documents on eMeeting or any CONT
committee information on eCommittee
For further information
Contact the CONT Secretariat or visit the website of the CONT
committee
NEWS FROM POLICY DEPARTMENT - BUDGETARY AFFAIRS
Recent Publications
CONT
At a Glance “Nominations for Members of the European Court of
Auditors” (update)
Documentation workshop “Open spaces at EU institutions versus
traditional work spaces: justification, evolution, evaluation and
results”
Briefing “Open Plan Offices - The new ways of working. The
advantages and disadvantages of open office space”
Briefing “Gender equality in the college of the European Court
of Auditors”
BUDG
Briefing “EU Gender budgeting: where do we stand?”
Study “Pilot projects and preparatory actions (PP/PA) in the EU
budget 2014-2019”
Briefing “Next Generation EU - Where are assigned revenue? Which
impact in 2021?”
Study “How EU funds tackle economic divide in the European
Union” (Available in DE, ES, FR, IT, PL, RO)
Study “Documenting climate mainstreaming in the EU budget -
making the system more transparent, stringent and
comprehensive”
Briefing “Assigned revenue in the Recovery Plan - The frog that
wishes to be as big as the ox?”
Study “A Just Transition Fund - How the EU budget can best
assist in the necessary transition from fossil fuels to sustainable
energy" (Available in DE, ES, FR, IT, PL)
Briefing “The net operating balances: Variants, emerging numbers
and history” (Available in DA, DE, ES, FR, IT, NL, PL, SV)
Briefing “Why net operating balances are a distorted indicator
of a Member State’s benefit from the EU budget” (Available in DA,
DE, ES, FR, IT, NL, PL, SV)
Briefing “The benefits of EU membership are not measured by net
operating balances” (Available in DA, DE, ES, FR, IT, NL, PL,
SV)
Forthcoming Publications
CONT
- Study “The largest 50 beneficiaries in each EU Member State of
CAP and cohesion funds”
- Study “MEP’s pension rights before and after the Members
Statute in 2009”
- Briefing “Special advisers to the European Commission”
Forthcoming Events
CONT Study presentation on “Horizon 2020: Geographical balance
of beneficiaries”
The European Parliament has concluded a new framework contract
on external expertise in the field of budgetary affairs, mainly for
the BUDG and CONT committees. Following on a public call for
tenders, seven bids have been received, checked and evaluated.
Service contracts for the years 2020-24 have been signed with the
following consultancies and think-tanks:
AEGIS, a network of academics from different universities, the
main partners from Spain, Germany and Italy;
Blomeyer & Sanz Ltd., based in Spain, leading a group of
institutes from Austria, Czechia, Germany, Italy and Poland;
Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), a research think-tank
from Brussels, with partners from Belgium, France, Latvia and
UK;
Centre for Strategy & Evaluation Services LLP (CSES), a
consultancy from UK and Ireland;
Deloitte Belgium, an audit company;
European Economic Research Ltd. (Europe-Economics), a
consultancy from UK;
Mr Ivailo KALFIN, a former MEP and former Minister in Bulgaria,
with some associated experts.
For more information see the publication of the procurement
outcome:
https://ted.europa.eu/udl?uri=TED:NOTICE:215928-2020:TEXT:EN:HTML
or contact the Policy Department:
[email protected]
CONTACTS
Policy Department for Budgetary Affairs
[email protected]
Policy Department Webpage
Disclaimer
The items contained herein are drafted by the Secretariat of the
Budgetary Control Committee of the European Parliament and are
provided for general information purposes only. The opinions
expressed in this document are the sole responsibility of the
author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position of
the European Parliament. This document may contain links to
websites that are created and maintained by other organisations.
The Secretariat does not necessarily endorse the view(s) expressed
on these websites.
